There’s no alternative to democracy, says Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said there is no alternative to democracy, arguing that he almost lost his life to a dictator under a military rule.

Olusegun Obasanjo

He said this on Friday at his Hilltop residence in Abeokuta when officials of the National Association of Nigerians Students and some student union leaders from various institutions of learning paid him a visit.

Obasanjo and some other retired military officers and civilians were jailed in 1995 by the military government of the late Gen.Sani Abacha, after he was found guilty by a military tribunal of allegedly plotting to overthrow  Abacha’s administration.

He was released after the dictator’s death in 1998 by the Abdusalami Abubakar military regime shortly after Abacha’s death.

Narrating his near-death experience under the late Abacha’s administration, the former President said he would support the current democratic dispensation led by President  Muhammadu Buhari to succeed.

He said, “I will work for the success of this current dispensation; there is no excuse because there is no alternative to democracy.

“The alternative to democracy is worse than dictatorship. I experienced that. Abacha put me in prison and I was about to be killed. If it was under democracy (democratic rule) that would not happen.”

Obasanjo, who said no matter what the critics of Buhari might say, it was evident that in the last two and half months, Nigerians had started to witness a sign of a country of their dream.

He noted that the country had tottered towards the precipice so many times, but God had not allowed it to tumble.

The ex-president said, “When one takes a look at everything, the most crucial and vital conclusion is that God loves Nigeria.

“The nation has gone toward the precipice many times and Nigeria did not tumble, this shows God is a Nigerian.

“Many had thought after the 2015 general elections. Nigeria will be no more. Some had sent their families abroad. Some know the NADECO route. I don’t know the NADECO route.

“I don’t have anywhere to go. But to the surprise of many of them, God did it in a miraculous way. The election took place, though some did not want it to take place. But let us thank God it took place. We must also thank those who conducted the elections.

“We thank God for peace even after the election. No single individual is a paragon of perfection. There is no Messiah except Jesus Christ. But there are people who still stick out their neck for the good of Nigerians.

“Thank God we have such as a leader now. What we have witnessed in the last two and half months is that our dreams are coming true. We must give unalloyed support to the government.

“Criticisms that are objective and positive are welcome where necessary.”

Responding to a question on whether Obasanjo added that Buhari took a right decision by giving the military a November deadline to end the Boko Haram insurgents.

He said setting a target was part of military war strategy to measure the success or failure of a particular operation.

He said, “President Muhammadu Buhari took a right decision by telling the military to quash the Boko Haram insurgents by November.

“It is not good to just leave everything open-ended. It is a strategy in the military to set a target for any operation. This will enable those concerned to work hard.

“Having a target is necessary. Even if that target was not met, the people concerned would have something to work with.”

Obasanjo, who used the Nigeria’s civil war as an example, said the military had set a six-month target to crush the Biafran renegades, but the war extended to 30 months.

He said, “For those of us who were involved in the Nigeria civil war, we set a six-month target to end the Nigeria-Biafra war, but it extended to 30 months.”

On his own part, the vice-president, NANS, Ogunkuade Oluwatosin, said the students’ body recognised the doggedness and contribution of the former president to the success of the 2015 general elections.

He said the Buhari-led administration should extend its anti-corruption war to education sector.

He said, “Your fatherly contribution to the development of Nigeria is visible, even three months after the general elections.

“We need your contribution to move Nigeria to Nigeria of our dreams. We want student-youth inclusion in the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.”

Obasanjo threw a challenge to the students, arguing that none of them was too young to make meaningful contribution to the development of the country.

There’s no alternative to democracy, says Obasanjo

Despite Nigeria wealth, Nigerians are poor - EU tells Buhari

• Ensure Nigerians enjoy democracy, EU tells Buhari

The European Union (EU) on Saturday urged the president-elect, retired Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that Nigerians enjoyed the democracy dividends.

Buhari

The EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr Michel Arrion, made the call at the Europe Day 2015 in Abuja.

Arrion explained that democracy meant nothing to the common man except it led to the improvement in their standards of living.

“But democracy only makes meaning to the common man to the extent that it delivers good governance, creates opportunities and improves the quality of living.

“Nigeria is rich, but Nigerians are poor. The incoming administration will have a lot to do in this regard.

“It must ensure that Nigeria’s massive population is galvanised into a formidable productive force that will generate wealth that is equally or rather equitably shared among all citizens,” he said.

According to Arrion, as the new government comes on stream, the world will want to see a Nigeria with the basic freedoms that distinguish democratic societies.

“The government must ensure that the basic freedoms including economic rights and welfare are not the exclusive preserve of a privileged few.

The EU envoy reminded Buhari of his promises before and after his election to pursue three priority objectives.

He said the first objective set by the President-elect was “to swiftly end the insurgency in the North East and restore peace and stability.

According to him, the second is to eradicate corruption, while the third is to put policies in place to put Nigeria’s economy on a proper footing.

He said that these goals set for the incoming government match closely the European Union’s vision for the country.

“Let me add a fourth objective that is very important for the European Union: regional integration,” he said.

Arrion said the EU strongly believed that peace and stability, as well as the economic development of Nigeria were achievable.

According to him, they will be better achieved within the framework of a closer and deeper co-operation of Nigeria with its neighbours in West and Central Africa.

“It is in that global context that the partnership between Nigeria and the EU is taking place. I am delighted to state that Nigeria and EU do share very strong relations of mutual trust and partnership.

“And I am very happy to confirm the excellent quality of our local political and policy dialogue between the 21 European Ambassadors and High Commissioner and the Government of Nigeria.”

He commended Nigeria and Nigerians for the success of the general elections, saying the last three months were very special for Nigerian citizens.

“We are happy that Nigeria has got it right, and look forward to other African countries following its good example,” he said.

The EU envoy commended outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan for gracefully “accepting the outcome of the election so that his country can move on.”

He said the EU was commemorating May 9, 1950, when the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman made an historical declaration proposing the economic and industrial integration of Europe.

The Day was attended by European envoys and citizens, members of the diplomatic corps, government functionaries and other important personalities.

Despite Nigeria wealth, Nigerians are poor - EU tells Buhari

Power grabbers bent on truncate democracy in Nigeria, Wole Soyinka

Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has raised the alarm that “illegal, sinister and power-grabbers” are bent on scuttling the country’s current democratic process.

The power-grabbers, according to him, are the ones pushing for the imposition of interim government on the country.

He said during an interview withSaharaTV, a United States-based online broadcast station operated by SaharaReporters, that what he was sure of, was that President Goodluck Jonathan knew such people.

The 80-year-old playwright, who on   Wednesday told a German radio station,Deutsche Welle, that he feared there were “clear indications of a military intervention,” said with the current political situation     and the insurgency in the North-East, Nigeria was facing its most dangerous period.

He said in spite of the challenges, what bothered him most, was the plot by some people to take over the rein of the country illegally.

Soyinka said, “This is what bothers me deeply: There are people who see this as an opportunity for their own political and sinister activities in the country.                        Therefore, we are not even united against the dangerous enemy of the country. The elections themselves are being used as an opportunity of sowing bitter seed of discord and for power-grabbing.

“It is now an established fact that there had been moves towards scuttling the democratic process by instituting a so-called interim government. But the proof is there of some participants in meetings for the formation of an interim government. Why form an interim government when there is an electoral process?

The Nobel laureate stated that he spoke personally with the President to ascertain his involvement in the plot to foist an interim government on Nigerians.

“I went to President Jonathan and I asked him, and he was to all appearances outraged by the very suggestion. I remember he used an expression, ‘If such a thing is going on it is outside my wish or my will. After I have been elected by the entire nation, isn’t being the head of an interim government a demotion and an undignifying position?’” Soyinka said.

“Maybe there are forces in operation in this nation during this very critical period about which he knows of that is the answer which I could make and it is up to him to sort himself out in contending with these illegal forces,” the literary icon said.

Soyinka therefore called on Nigerians not to be complacent about the current political situation in the country.

He said, “I believe that these elections, going by his (Jonathan) body language… it is very difficult to penetrate truthfully and deeply into the minds of politicians… going by his body language, I think Jonathan has no intention of scuttling the elections.

“In other words, the elections would take place but what kind of elections would we have? And what might be the aftermath of the elections? He has repeatedly said, ‘I’m going back to Otuoke if I lose the election.’ I just hope we don’t wake up one day with our complacent attitude and find out that we, as a people, have been overthrown by very sinister, illegal and useless forces.”

He had told Deutsche Welle on Wednesday   that   “ex-military officers and security officers were trying to push aside the political contestants and use the unrest (in the North-East) as an excuse to establish an interim government.

Soyinka explained that “the nature of the interim government wants to pretend it’s not really a military intervention.”

He   added that   “a few political leaders, well-known civilians, want to give the veneer of civilian structure, but basically it’s a kind of political intervention.”

The Nobel laureate, who stated that Nigeria “is aspiring very hard to become a failed state,” also lamented the increasingly aggressive direction the election campaign in Nigeria was taking.

Soyinka told DW that while he doesn’t support the opposition’s move to file criminal charges against Mrs. Patience Jonathan at the International Criminal Court, her comments should be checked.

Power grabbers bent on truncate democracy in Nigeria, Wole Soyinka

Buhari masquerading as progressive - group

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By Daud Olatunji

ABEOKUTA—Yoruba leaders under the aegis of Yoruba Progressives, have accused the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, General Muhammadu Buhari of ‘masquerading’ as a progressive within the APC.

The leaders in a statement by the Secretary General of the Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, Senator Femi Okurounmu, recalled how the former Head of State reportedly attacked   progressive movement during his regime.

According to the group, Buhari insulted Chief Obafemi Awolowo, surrounded his house with troops and seized his international passport and shortened his life by denying him a medical trip overseas.

“The APC presidential candidate incarcerated governors of Unity Party of Nigeria, UPN and also cancelled the Lagos Metroline Projects.   President Goodluck Jonathan deserves a second term considering his achievements in the areas of economy, democracy, human rights and rule of law in the face of politically promoted insurgency,” he said.

 

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Buhari masquerading as progressive - group

CJN to judges: Don’t truncate democracy

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By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA— As the nation prepares for the general elections this month, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, yesterday handed down a serious warning to all judicial officers in the country saying ‘judiciary must never again be used as tool to truncate our democracy’.

The CJN gave the warning while swearing-in the 242 judges who have been selected to serve as chairmen and members of the 2015 Election Petition Tribunals. He also cautioned them not to accept gifts or engage in illicit communication with politicians or their lawyers.

Swearing-in the tribunal members at the Supreme Court, yesterday, the CJN, said the National Judicial Council, NJC, would not hesitate to deal with any judge who allows himself to be influenced by any interest group.

He urged the tribunal judges to be careful and thorough in the review of the petitions and responses, pleadings, the physical evidence and argument of counsel of the parties that will appear before them.

“You must ensure that all petitions must be founded upon grounds which are contained in section 138 of the Electoral Act and not on extraneous provisions of law, as the Tribunal is not a court of vain inquisition.

“All your considerations must be founded in law only and not coloured by personal sympathies, opinions or affiliations, remembering that there is a resonance to the truism that the Judiciary is ‘the last hope of the common man’, and may I add, also the hope of the not so common man”, the CJN said.

He added: “Let me use this opportunity to sound a note of warning to all judicial officers. Do not allow any political party or politician to compromise your integrity or your future.

“We must never again be used as tools to truncate our nation’s democracy. I assure you that any judge found wanting would only have him or herself to blame as the NJC will definitely not spare the rod in ensuring that the honour, respect and independence of the Judiciary is protected.

“As you start your assignment, I must reiterate that while you are on the tribunals, you will be looked upon as the embodiment of this ideal of justice. To that end, you must be the dispensers of justice regardless of fear or favour, position or standing.

 

Uphold stability of democracy

“You must uphold the stability of this democracy by stamping the hallmark of legality on the conduct of our nation’s elections as it is through your eyes that justice perceives a wrong that must be made right.

“It is, therefore, apt to remind you that your integrity is sacrosanct. There is no alternative to integrity as it is not negotiable. You must ensure that your acts are in strict conformity with the law.

“Therefore, you must shun acts as the acceptance of gifts or favours from counsel and politicians, and the exchange of illicit communications with parties, which acts will erode the integrity of the tribunals irretrievably.”

The CJN equally stressed that the tribunals must strictly adhere to the provision of Section 134 of the Electoral Act which stipulates that all petitions must be filled within 21 days of the declaration of the result of an election.

“You must also bear in mind that Section 285 of the Constitution and Section 134(2) of the Electoral Act 2010, are also clear that all petitions must be heard and judgments rendered in writing and delivered in open court within 180 days of the filing of that petition.

“Any petition presented outside of the statutory time must not be countenanced for any reason.

“Since you all do not have the luxury of time in the discharge of your duties, I urge you all to be pedantic in your deliberations but do not allow ‘red-herring’ technicalities to distract you from the path of justice.

 

Judiciary on trial

“You must listen attentively and enquire appropriately, taking care not to descend into the arena. In addition, it is crucial that you consider all the evidence before you carefully, deliberate conscientiously, and adjudicate swiftly and justly as not only you but the entire judiciary will also be on trial.

“I need not remind you that the Tribunal assignment is very laborious and that you are likely to be overstretched in the handling of election matters. Praises and condemnation will be meted out to you in the course of discharging your duties.

“Unfortunately, some of the condemnations will come from our partners in the temple of justice, i.e. the Bar. I urge you not to be deterred by the uncomplimentary comments of some politicians and litigants anytime judgment is given against them.

“Posterity will judge you on the words that you utter in judgment and my sincere prayer is that we all shall not be judged harshly by history”, the CJN stated.

Section 133(3) (a) and (b) of the Electoral Act 2010, states that Election Petitions Tribunals must be established 14 days prior to the elections. The Secretariat of the Tribunals must be opened seven days before election.

The CJN said the swearing-in of the Election Petition Tribunal members was necessary to enable the Secretariat of the Tribunal in each state of the federation open in accordance with the provision of the Electoral Act.

 

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CJN to judges: Don’t truncate democracy